The Way She Ran
by moistlemon
Summary: Goodsprings, the place where she had died. Not exactly the place she'd like to settle down, but it was way better than anywhere else, and, after all, they do say home is where the heart is. (aka my first attempt of fanfic)


this is my first fanfic, thanks for clickin on it  
dont own fallout  
s/o to sheason for writing such a good fic that it got me off my lazy ass to write my own

* * *

As the fist rocketed towards her jaw, she deftly bent her body downwards, the blow barely missing the raven black hair on her head.

With the speed of a viper, the woman straightened her posture, while at the same time striking upwards, her fist colliding with her assailant's cleft chin.

Cheers and jeers were thrown at the lady as she basked in her victory, setting her arms out beside her, absorbing all the praise and hate indiscriminately. But shortly after the man she knocked out hit the ground, a yell immediately caught her attention.

"Goddammit, Kara! Get your uppity ass up outta my bar!"

The cheers died down as fury-lit, verdant glared into dark brown. Letting her hair out the messy bun she tied up prior to the fight, the brawler pleaded in response, her words slurred,

"Come on, Trudy! You heard what he said, who the fuck _doesn't_ know about me 'round here?"

Goodsprings' mayor swept her rugged, red hair back and let a incredulous sigh leave her lips at the sight of the town's oh-so benevolent savior acting in such arrogance.

"Look, Kara, it wouldn't have even mattered if the man bought you a damn drink or not, I wouldn't have served your drunk ass anyways," Kara opened her mouth to protest, but was cut off by Trudy, "Now, after you've gone taunted and proceeded to break his fuckin' chin, and, in turn, lost me a customer, the chances of you getting another drink tonight have been reduced from slim to non-ex- _fucking_ -sistent, so let me repeat myself," anger seeped from her next words, " _get the fuck out of my saloon_ , unless you want to deal with security _,"_ she gestured to a bald, muscular man at the end of the bar.

The Courier bristled and annoyance flickered in her drunkenly tired eyes as she relented,

"Fine," she paced towards Trudy's office, knowing that leaving that way would piss off the mayor, shoulder-checking the "security" as she made her way out.

* * *

Arid, broiling air enveloped her, as the radiant sun slowly lowered itself beyond the horizon. Goodsprings' welcoming sign swung back and forth, giving creaks every time, as a light gale blew dust and tumbleweeds through empty streets. The hum of the Prospector Saloon's neon logo buzzed though dead air. Brahmin lowed, light conversation could be heard behind her, back in the bar, and suddenly, the pitter-patter of footsteps quickly approached her from the side.

'Gecko!' the alert, and awake part of her screamed. But the dumb, drunk part of her responded by slowly turning her head in the direction of the sound. Fortunately, both sober and drunk parts of her squealed in delight as a ball of black and grey fur found itself in her arms, licking her face without a care. The Courier let all previous tension away as she ran her fingers through the dog's fur.

"Cheyenne! Down, girl!" A further away voice commanded, a voice sounding like honey to the Courier's ears, a voice she hadn't heard in a while. "Well," the girl approached the Courier, scrutinizing the woman as she pet the dog, "when did you get into town?"

The lightly-tanned woman stared blankly as her hand gently stroked the dogs head. Her mind desperately tried to let sobriety take reign in her mind. To no avail, of course, as her attention had been heavily split between adoration for Cheyenne, and surprise at the dog's owner suddenly appearing. Eventually, after a lot of awkward silence and a raised eyebrow from Sunny, the Courier eloquently put,

"Uh... today, noon-ish."

Sunny Smiles, contrary to her moniker, frowned in suspicion, her brown eyes squinting at the taller woman. The scent of brew and booze suddenly hit her nose, and her frown deepened into a scowl,

"Kara. You are drunk off your ass, aren't ya?

What was supposedly a question was clearly an accusation to the Courier, who, embarrassed, replied,

"Ha ha... no." The last syllable was drawn out.

Unconvinced, the shorter woman's scowl remained, until it slowly receded into a gentler, concerned, yet still chiding furrow of her brow,

"Do ya have a place to sleep tonight?"

"No, I was gonna ask Doc Mit-"

The Courier, even in her addled state, didn't miss the girl in front her falter and softly cringe as she interjected,

"Doc Mitch... he ain't round these parts no more."

"Oh, where's he gone to?"

"Kara," Sunny paused, her shoulders slumping, "he's dead," she looked up at the now downcast woman, gauging her reaction. When the Courier didn't respond, she decided to stay silent, until she heard a soft mutter,

"How?"

Caught off-guard, Sunny hesitated a moment before obliging,

"A heart attack. In the middle of the day, his body was found in his own kitchen, a cig in his own hand."

Sunny Smiles was expecting a lot of things, but a sobbing woman, almost a head taller than her, awkwardly caught in her arms was probably one of the last in that list.

Not one to stand idly by, Sunny quickly brought her hand up to Kara's head, cradling it, and at the same time wrapped her other arm around her waist. She hugged the Courier tight, patting her back. They stayed this way for a bit, Kara's cries calming down eventually. When she felt the time right, Sunny whispered into the girl's ear,

"You can stay with me tonight, Kara. That fine?" She felt the Courier's head nod on her shoulder.

"And I know it doesn't mean much but... it's good to have ya here. Welcome back."

Sunny didn't know how much that really _did_ mean to the Courier.

* * *

hope yall stick around, i dont have a schedule so im sorry bout that in advance, but i have ideas for this story that im excited for yall to see


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